Tips To Make Your Résumé Stand Out

It’s a little daunting to know that all your work is being reviewed on one 8.5 x 11″ piece of paper, so it’s essential to put your best foot forward.

For a professional opinion on résumés, I contacted Kelly Forde, a career services specialist in BU’s COM Career Services. Ms. Forde helps students in all aspects of career development from writing your first cover letter to proper interview attire. I took her class, COM CO102 Special Seminar, last spring which is a non-credit class that meets for one hour every week to discuss all aspects of career building. I highly recommend the class, but if you can’t fit it into your schedule, here are her top three tips for a great résumé:

Strategize

Since you don’t have a lot of space, focus only on including information that is relevant to the degree or job you’re applying for. If you’re applying for a social media internship, you don’t need to include your summer waitressing job if you’re tight on space. Try to focus on what you have done which makes you the perfect candidate for the position in relation to your education or experience.

Be Descriptive

Try to be as descriptive as possible so the employer knows exactly what successes you’ve had. Since they are very busy, you want it to be as clear as possible when they read over your resume. As Ms. Forde says, “Always remember that your resume should sell, not tell.”

Ask the Right People for Advice

When you’re creating a resume everyone will have a different opinion about what experience is more important and how to phrase your words, but you should only trust resume and career specialists. They have been trained in the field and know exactly what employers are looking for. A great resource is COM Career Services’ Resume Review hours. There, trained experts can review your resume and cover letters during their fall walk-in hours.